Shares of Scholar Rock Holdings (SRRK) rose nearly 15% during Wednesday’s trading after the biopharmaceutical company announced positive results from a weight-loss drug trial.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based firm said its drug apitegromab was generally well tolerated in a Phase 2 clinical trial. The trial tested apitegromab in combination with tirzepatide, a popular weight-loss drug sold by Eli Lilly (LLY) under the brand names Mounjaro and Zepbound.
Scholar Rock reported that 30% of the total weight lost by patients taking tirzepatide alone came from lean body mass. However, when apitegromab (at a dose of 10 mg/kg) was added to tirzepatide, participants preserved an additional 4.2 pounds (1.9 kilograms) or 54.9% of their lean mass compared to those on tirzepatide alone. This suggests a higher quality of weight loss with the combined treatment.
Dr. Akshay Vaishnaw, Scholar Rock’s President of Research and Development, said the EMBRAZE trial met its main goal. He added that the results support the company’s belief that their selective myostatin inhibitors can help millions of patients lose weight more healthily by preserving lean mass safely while using GLP therapies.
Despite the strong trial results and the jump in share price, Scholar Rock’s stock is still down about 17% so far this year.
